I previously had a good experience at Matsuhisa when I ordered their upper-priced omakase, but alas, our experience this time around felt like such a ripoff and none of us has been back since then.
I ordered a la carte this time around and started with the crab taco.
This was good as the crab was fresh and meaty, and the crunchiness of the taco shell made a great combination.I also got the eggplant dynamite as it seemed interesting.
Interesting and pretty enjoyable, though nothing special.I also got the mushroom buckwheat risotto (since I wasn't full)
Risotta is al dente and mushroom tasted good, but to eat by yourself this dish gets boring.But enough about my meal, let's move on to my friend's disappointing omakase meal.
She had chosen the least expensive omakase, which I believe was about $70.
They started off the omakase with some hamachi tartar
Kat enjoyed this and the hamachi was pretty fresh - so far the meal is starting off decent.Second item was salmon carpaccio.
Again, fresh salmon. My friend was complaining a bit that salmon is pretty cheap, though.Then they served the hamachi salad. Wait. Hamachi, again?
Okay, so the hamachi sashimi was actually good, but two hamachi dishes in an omakase? It seems to be pretty poorly planned - or they just didn't really care at all.Next she got the oyster fried in filo dough.
Although my friend did enjoy this, the dish was only $5 on the regular menu, so getting this as part of a $70 meal is kind of ... a ripoff :(The other cooked item was the miso cod.
The cod was good and well prepared, but this dish can be easily found at many japanese restaurants.I didn't even bother to take a photo of her sushi plate, as it was quite disappointing. She basically got the most ordinary, cheapest selections such as salmon (yes, more salmon), ebi (no, not ama ebi), unagi ...
$70 would have gone a loooot further at Sushi Zo. And he definitely wouldn't keep repeating hamachi and salmons throughout the meal!
The dessert they had for this "cheapest" omakase is pretty run-of-the-mill stuff. My friend got fried bananas with vanilla ice cream.
I won't argue that the food at Matsuhisa is of good quality, but the omakase she got that day was such a ripoff and disappointment. We really don't think all the items she got are really worth (or even actually added up to) $70, and the repeated fish just suggested that they put very little thought into planning the omakase!
Neither of us has been back ever since, and probably never will.
Matsuhisa
129 N La Cienega Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
(310) 659-9639
Yikes, with such a small-course omakase there really shouldn't be any repeat of a fish unless the preparation seriously differed. Thanks for the warning about this one...
ReplyDeletematsuhisa's probably resting on some laurels and focusing on Nobu LA up the street, which is a shame in my opinion. A chef's namesake restaurant should always be his best. I like how wolfgang puck was making the rounds at Spago, even with his huge empire. I think Oiishi Eats said she saw Mario Batali at Babbo. Those are good signs. I wonder when the last time Nobu stopped by Matsuhisa, or even cooked there.
ReplyDeleteI was disappointed at Matsuhisa once a couple years ago and just felt like they were sliding downhill. I sob for your friend's disappointing $70 meal. That is one sad omakase.
ReplyDelete